MLB Draft cut to 5 rounds (from 40)

[AZTwin]

Undrafted players can sign for a maximum of $20k per pick

[operation mindcrime]

I hope we can find some undrafted diamonds in the rough!

[AZTwin]

If the maximum undrafted players can get is $20k, I imagine most people will go to college or back to college

[AZTwin]

Even college seniors typically would get $50k

[bighat]

Yeeps, terrible luck for lots of those borderline college seniors who'd have been late draft picks. With the minor league season cancelled, independent leagues cancelled, AND fewer minor league teams in the mix....what do those guys do now? Ouch.

[Doctor Gast]

There`s a lot of quality college players out there this year, hopefully we will get a lion share. IMO We have a pretty good scouting report

[Nine of twelve]

Assuming this is true (and I have no reason to believe it's not) this seems to benefit the wealthiest teams. Every team will see a decrease in short term revenue, of course, but I have to believe that the Yankees, Dodgers, et al have much larger reserves to tap into for signing undrafted players. This will also probably be the case for free agent signings during the next few years.

[AZTwin]

Assuming this is true (and I have no reason to believe it's not) this seems to benefit the wealthiest teams. Every team will see a decrease in short term revenue, of course, but I have to believe that the Yankees, Dodgers, et al have much larger reserves to tap into for signing undrafted players. This will also probably be the case for free agent signings during the next few years.

Assuming good players will sign for $20k. It seems like a short term fix this year so I imagine most would go back to school...

[darin617]

Such a shocker that the players union doesn't care about people not in their union yet? I just hope they got something in return or at least something down the road?

[Nine of twelve]

 

Assuming good players will sign for $20k. It seems like a short term fix this year so I imagine most would go back to school...

Not those who have completed their eligibility. And there will probably be a lot of those.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Not those who have completed their eligibility. And there will probably be a lot of those.

I do believe that the NCAA is granting an additional year of eligibility due to this.. I could see a lot of graduating seniors staying back a year and potentially doing some grad work, especially if they had scholarships.

[Nine of twelve]

 

I do believe that the NCAA is granting an additional year of eligibility due to this.. I could see a lot of graduating seniors staying back a year and potentially doing some grad work, especially if they had scholarships.

There can be creative ways to stay in school in cases like that. You mentioned grad school, and often it's possible to get a second bachelor's degree. I once knew someone who had a BA, a BS and a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts).

[ashbury]

There can be creative ways to stay in school in cases like that. You mentioned grad school, and often it's possible to get a second bachelor's degree. I once knew someone who had a BA, a BS and a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts).

A confirmed bachelor, you're trying to say?

 

[DocBauer]

I do believe that the NCAA is granting an additional year of eligibility due to this.. I could see a lot of graduating seniors staying back a year and potentially doing some grad work, especially if they had scholarships.

The NCAA is allowing all spring sport athletes to return for another year of competition/eligibility. This includes baseball amongst other sports such as softball, track and field, tennis, golf, etc, unless I missed any exclusions.

 

Kudos to the NCAA for doing something right for a change. The problem with this, however, is 3 fold:

 

1] What does the athlete want to do?

 

2] With point #1, every spring sport I can think of is always a partial scholarship, so the onus is on any athlete to incur further debt for another year, pending various other grants or scholarships.

 

3] Various universities may simply not have funds available to "float" even partial scholarships for another year. Without a full 2020 schedule of school and athletics, some schools may have to shut their doors for a year, if not longer, or make serious changes/cutbacks. Wisconsin, for example, has already stated they will not allow for an extra year as it would not be fair to athletes who had season's cut short, nor for non athlete attendees on various scholarships.

 

The 5 round draft hurts everyone involved. MLB should expand to at least 10 rounds, IMO, if not 15-20, to allow for these circumstances. MLB is still a business, and one that has ZERO cash flow at the moment and has no idea what is going to transpire for 2020. But MLB also has to build for their own future, without opening up some crazy floodgate for upper echelon teams with greater financial reserves.

 

The EASY solution, IMO, to allow for what is happening in the world at this moment, and to be fair for all involved, is to adopt old school draft rules for a year. I don't recall all the parameters as not only have signing numbers and dates for offers changed, but IIRC correctly, there used to be two different phases of the draft.

 

Regardless, there used to be a "draft and follow" portion of the selection process. Certain levels of players could be drafted and allowed to play the following year and then signed by the drafting team up until a couple weeks before the next draft. They could sign or re-enter the draft at that point.

 

The signage pool is what it is and has become. And teams can play with their pool to over sign or under sign various players. And after the first few rounds of the draft, we have all seen wild swings from $10k to $200+K for college players in particular. And maybe the $20K should be bumped closer to $40-50k. But allow teams to make an additional 5-10-15 selections and let the draftees make the choice. Do they sign now? Or do they wait to sign before the next draft, counting against the team's pool of 2020/2021 adjusted pool?

 

Nobody is on the hook for anything except a wait and see scenario.

 

To player and team, this seems the only fair way to me.